Following last month’s news that Jake Schreier (Paper Towns, Robot & Frank) is set to direct Marvel Studios’ rumored film Thunderbolts, Marvel Studios officially acknowledged the upcoming project today at San Diego Comic-Con while revealing what’s in store for the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s Phase 5. In addition to seeing the official logo, we learned that Thunderbolts will be getting a theatrical release on July 26, 2024.
Previously, we had learned that script will come from Black Widow‘s Eric Pearson, and Kevin Feige will produce, though Marvel Studios has not yet commented on any details of the project outside of the release date.
For those unfamiliar with the antihero team the Thunderbolts, their comic origins saw Baron Zemo gather together a group of former members of the Masters of Evil following the battle with Onslaught. Initially, the group disguised themselves as a superhero team that operated under the name the Thunderbolts. However, despite Zemo’s nefarious plans, the group eventually decided they wanted to attempt to be actual heroes after all.
Throughout the years, and as with many team ups in Marvel Comics, there have been various iterations of the Thunderbolts. While we don’t yet know which characters will be a part of the live-action team, it would be surprising not to see Daniel Brühl reprise his role as Helmut Zemo. The Falcon and The Winter Soldier finale last saw the character, who had begun to work his way into a morally grey area after his first appearance in Captain America: Civil War, “safely” locked up on the Raft.
For what it’s worth, Bucky Barnes himself led the Thunderbolts in the comics at one point. Given where Sebastian Stan’s character left off with Zemo in the aforementioned Disney+ series, this could be a fitting reunion for the pair. Other potential appearances could include the likes of Yelena Belova, Ghost, U.S. Agent, Taskmaster, Contessa Valentina Allegra de Fontaine and more.
Based on the current Phase 5 timeline, Thunderbolts is slated to be the final release after Captain America: New World Order.
